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1

The Structure of Bambara1

Dr. Sonja Ermisch

1 Introduction

The focus in this talk will be on the verb. This will be looked at from three angles:

TAM elements

copula forms derivational suffixes

2 Some general notes on the language

Bambara is a member of the Mande language family in West Africa (Niger-Congo phylum) it is - besides Swahili, Hausa and Fula - one of the most important languages in Africa with regard to distribution and the number of speakers it is spoken in Mali, Ivory Coast, Upper Guinea, in the western part of Burkina Faso and in eastern Senegal it is a tone language (high / low)

Bambara has only one pronominal paradigm:

singular emph. plural emph.

1 ´ n´e 1 ´anw / ´an 2 ´i ´e 2 ´aw / ´a 3 `a `ale 3 `u `olu it is highly isolating and has a very strict word order:

Subject AUX / TAM Object Verb ...

1 This material was largely compiled for a structure course of Bambara during the last semester. Many

thanks to my colleague Klaus Beyer who is - in contrast to me - an expert with regard to Mande languages and provided me with many valuable insights. 2

3 TAM elements in Bambara

3.1 An overview of the TAM markers in Bambara2

Simple

Present

Present

Progressive

Simple

Past

Perfect

Tense Past

Perfect

Future

("secure")

Future

("insecure") tr. intr. tr. intr. tr. intr. tr. intr. tr. intr. tr. intr. tr. intr. aff. bE bE bE ka bE ka tun bE tun bE ye -ra na, -la) tun ye tun -ra na, -la) na na bena bena neg. tE tE tE ka tE ka tun tE tun tE ma ma tun ma tun ma tena tena tena tena aff. bE ... la/na bE ... la/na neg. tE ... la/na tE ... la/na

3.1.1 (Simple) Present

a) Transitive verbs (1)a. Sanu bE baara kE

Sanu PRES.AFF work do

'Sanu works.' b. Sanu tE baara kE

Sanu PRES.NEG work do

'Sanu does not work.' b) Intransitive verbs (2)a. An bE taa sugu la.

1PL PRES.AFF go market POSTPOS

"We go to the market." b. An tE taa sugu la.

1PL PRES.NEG go market POSTPOS

"We do not go to the market." c) Reflexive verbs (3)a. n bE n ko.

I PRES.AFF PRO.REFL wash

'I wash myself."

2 This overview is based on the Bamankan Learner's Reference Grammar (Fofarna and Traoré). Changes

in the interlinear translation - as for example with regard to the modification of the abbreviation PRED

- are my own. 3 b. n tE n ko.

I PRES.NEG PRO.REFL wash

'I do not wash myself." The third person singular constitutes an exception, as the "reflexive pronoun" here is not a - as one would expect - but i. c. a bE i ko.

She/he PRES.AFF PRO.REFL wash

'She washes herself.' / 'He washes himself.'

3.1.2 Present Progressive

a) Transitive verbs (4)a. N bE ka liburu kalan.

1SG PRES.AFF PROG book read

'I am reading the book.' b. N tE ka liburu kalan.

1SG PRES.NEG PROG book read

'I am not reading the book.' (5)a. U bE liburu-kalan na.

3PL PRES.AFF book read.PROG POSTPOS

'They are reading the book.' b. U tE liburu-kalan na.

3PL PRES.NEG book read.PROG POSTPOS

'They are not reading the book.' b) Intransitive verbs (6)a. Birama bE ka taa so.

Birama PRES.AFF PROG go home

'Birama is going home.' b. Birama tE ka taa so.

Birama PRES.NEG PROG go home

'Birama is not going home.' (7)a. A bE yaala la.

3SG PRES.AFF take a walk POSTPOS

'She is taking a walk.' b. A tE yaala la.

3SG PRES.NEG take a walk POSTPOS

'She is not taking a walk.' 4

2.1.3 Simple Past

a) Transitive verbs (8)a. N tun bE liburu kalan.

1SG PAST PRES.AFF book read

'I was reading the book.' / 'I used to read the book.' b. N tun tE liburu kalan.

1SG PAST PRES.NEG book read

'I was not reading the book.' b) Intransitive verbs (9)a. Musa tun bE taa.

Musa PAST PRES.AFF go

'Musa was going.' / 'Musa used to go.' b. Musa tun tE taa.

Musa PAST PRES.NEG go

'Musa was not going.'

3.1.4 Perfect Tense

a) Transitive verbs (10)a. Birama ye liburu kalan.

Birama PERF.AFF book read

'Birama has read the book.' b. Birama ma liburu kalan.

Birama PERF.NEG book read

'Birama has not read the book.' b) Intransitive verbs (11)a. Fali sa-ra donkey die-PERF.AFF 'The donkey has died.' b. Fali ma sa. donkey PERF.NEG die 'The donkey has not died.' (12)a. Birama segin-na

Birama return-PERF.AFF

'Birama has returned.' b. Birama ma segin.

Birama PERF.NEG return

'Birama has not returned.' 5 (13)a. Tabali kari-la table break-PERF.AFF 'The table has broken.' b. Tabali ma kari. table PERF.NEG break 'The table has not broken.'

3.1.5 Past Perfect

a) Transitive verbs (14)a. Umu tun ye malo tobi.

Umu PAST PERF.AFF rice cook

'Umu had cooked rice.' b. Umu tun ma malo tobi.

Umu PAST PERF.NEG rice cook

'Umu had not cooked rice.' b) Intransitive verbs (15)a. Anw tun taa-ra so.

1PL PAST go-PERF.AFF home

'We had gone home.' b. Anw tun ma taa so.

1PL PAST PERF.NEG go home

'We had not gone home.'

3.1.6 Future Tense

a) Transitive verbs (16)a. Birama na mobili ko.

Birama NEAR.FUT car wash

'Birama is going to wash the car.' b. Birama tena mobili ko.

Birama FUT.NEG car wash

'Birama will not wash the car.' (17)a. Muso bena den sOrO.

Muso DIST.FUT baby have

'The woman will have a baby.' b. Muso tena den sOrO.

Muso FUT.NEG baby have

'The woman will not have a baby.' 6 b) Intransitive verbs (18)a. Umu na taa market la.

Umu NEAR.FUT go market POSTPOS

'Umu is going to the market.' b. Umu tena taa market la.

Umu FUT.NEG go market POSTPOS

'Umu is not going to the market.' (19)a. Umu bena taa market la.

Umu DIST.FUT go market POSTPOS

'Umu will go to the market.' b. Umu tena taa market la.

Umu FUT.NEG go market POSTPOS

'Umu is not going to the market.'

4 Copula forms in Bambara3

4.1 don

don is a presentative element and corresponds to English be. It expresses existential being.

4.1.1 Present

(20)a. ne don b. ne tE.

1SG COP 1SG COP.NEG

'It's me.' 'It is not me.' (21)a. ce-w don b. ce-w tE. man-PL COP man-PL COP.NEG "They are men.' 'They are not men.'

4.1.2 Simple Past

(22)a. Misi tun don. b. Misi tun tE. cow PAST COP cow PAST COP.NEG 'It was a/the cow.' 'It wasn't a/the cow.'

4.2 bE

This construction expresses and idea or action.

4.2.1 Present

(23)a. Tile bE. b. Tile tE. sun COP sun COP.NEG 'It is sunny.' 'It is not sunny.'

3 In some sources the copula forms are labeled as PRED. As I find this term quite misleading, I use COP

throughout this section. 7

4.2.2 Simple Past

(24)a. Funteni tun bE. heat PAST COP 'It was hot.' b. Funteni tun tE. heat PAST COP.NEG 'It was not hot.'

4.3 ye....ye

The construction with ye ... ye, in which the noun is surrounded by the two particles,

expresses subject focus by which the subject is identified. In negative contexts the first

realization of ye is replaced by tE.

4.3.1 Present

(25)a. Nin ye wulu ye. this COP dog COP 'This is a dog.' b. Nin tE wulu ye. this COP.NEG dog COP 'This is not a dog.'

4.3.2 Simple Past

(26)a. Nin tun ye wulu ye. this PAST COP dog COP 'This was a dog.' b. Nin tun tE wulu ye. this PAST COP.NEG dog COP 'This was a dog.'

4.4 ka

ka and its negative correspondent, man, link noun and adjective. However, they cannot be used with all adjectives.

4.4.1 Present

(27)a. N ka yan. b. N man yan.

1SG COP tall 1SG COP.NEG tall

'I am tall.' 'I am not tall.'

4.4.2 Simple Past

(28)a. cE tun ka surun. b. cE tun man surun. man PAST COP short man PAST COP short 'The man was short.' 'The man was short.' 8

5 Verbal Derivation

-la (-na after nasal) /-baga / -baa: Nomina Agentis / Noun Agent productive -la (-na) can only be suffixed to transitive verbs with incorporated objects that precede the verbal part within the agent noun. This derivation is used to describe a person with regard to her/his usual and characteristic actions. -la / -na (Kastenholz 1998): kà móbili bòli 'to drive a car' => móbili-boli-la 'driver' kà s`EnE k´E 'to work => s`EnE-kE-la 'farmer' on the field' kà m`OgO fàga 'to kill a person' => m`OgO-faga-la 'killer' -baga (The New Bambara Grammar): kà sé 'to achieve' => sé-baga 'champion' kà à kàlan 'to read something' => kàlan-baga 'reader of' kà tága 'to go away' => tága-baga 'someone who goes away' -baa (The New Bambara Grammar): kisi 'to save' => Kisi-baa 'Savior' bange 'to bring forth' => bange-baa 'parent' dila 'to make' => dila-baa 'maker' Agent nouns can - as already mentioned - be used in relative-like constructions:

Ne tè4 a dila-baa dòn.

1SG PRES.NEG 3SG maker know

'I don't know who made it.' -lan (-na(n) after a nasal vowel or consonant):

Instruments in the broadest sense

highly productive, can be suffixed to all verbs very often lexicalized and part of the lexicon

Examples (Kastenholz 1998):

sìgi 'sit' => sìgi-lan 'chair' dátugu 'to cover' => dátugu-lan 'lid' bàmu 'to carry a child => bàmu-nan 'sling' on the back'

4 I did not change tone or vowel quality in these examples, but present them in the way in which they

occur in the original sources. 9 -li (-ni): Nomina Actiones / Verbal Nouns

Examples (Kastenholz 1998):

jìra 'show something' => jìra-li 'the showing' dúmu 'eat' => dúmu-ni 'the eating' wúli 'get up' => wúli-li 'the getting up'

The derivations with -li can be combined with the postpositions lá (ná, rá..) and kàn to

form a kind of progressive in nominal clauses. Examples (Kastenholz 1998, interlinearization my own):

´n b´E dúmu-ni ná

1SG PRES.AFF eat-VN POSTPOS:at / with

'I am eating.' lit.: 'I am at the eating.'

à b´E s´EbEn-ni kàn

3SG PRES.AFF write-VN POSTPOS:at / with

'She / He is writing.' lit.: 'She / He is at the writing.' -len (-nen after nasal): Result of an action / Past Participle (passive)

Examples (Kastenholz 1998):

nà (intr.) 'come' => nà-nen 'come' bìn (intr.) 'fall' => bìn-nen 'fallen' sègin (intr.) 'come back' => sègin-nen 'come back' d´On (tr.) 'know' => d´On-nen 'known' The past participle can be used as adjective. It follows the noun, and plural is either marked on the noun or on the participle. Examples (Kastenholz 1998, interlinearizations are my own): gán kò-len ocra wash-PPP 'washed ocra ' à yé gán kò-len k´E dàga k´OnO

3SG PERF.AFF ocra wash-PPP put pot POSTPOS:in

'She put washed ocra into the pot.' bà sìri-len-w goat tie-PPP-PL 'tied goats' bá-w sìri-len b´E b´in Òìmi (nyìmi) goat-PL tie-PPP PRES.AFF grass chew 'The tied goats chew grass.' 10 The past participle can also be used in a predicative way. Then it forms the predicate together with the following TAM marker. Examples (Kastenholz 1998, interlinearization my own): kú túru-len b´E yams plant-PPP PRES.AFF 'The yams is planted.' bà-w sìri-len t´E túgun goat-PL tie-PPP PRES.NEG anymore 'The goats are not tied anymore.' mùso-w sìgi-len tùn b´E só k´OnO woman-PL sit-PPP PAST PRES.AFF house POSTPOS: in 'The women sat in the house.' The past participle can also be used to express a temporal sequence. tìle bìn-nen, Ncí wúli-la sun fall-PPP Ncí get up-PERF.AFF 'When the sun had fallen, Nci got up.' The New Bambara Grammar gives an example of a past participle in a relative context (interlinearizations are my own):

O mògò sigi-len na-na yan kunun.

DEM.PROX person sit-PPP come-PERF.AFF here yesterday 'This person who is seated came here yesterday.' -tO: Expression of an action during its occurrence / Present Participle This suffix is used to form the present participle of transitive and intransitive verbs. With transitive verbs the reading is passive. These participles follow the noun and have adjectival function. The plural is marked on the noun or on another attribute, but not on the participle.

Examples (Kastenholz 1998):

sé 'reach ' => sé-tO 'reaching' sègin 'come back' => sègin-tO 'coming back' túru 'to plant' => túru-tO 'being planted' According to Kastenholz these participles are most often used as sentence- initial complement and express simultaneity ('when', 'while' etc.). sán nà-tO, m`OgO sí má yé rain come-PPA person not at all none see 'When / While it rained no person was seen.' 11 The following examples from The New Bambara Grammar illustrate further usage of the present participle (interlinearizations are my own.) predicative:

I taa-tò don min?

2SG go-PPA COP where

'Where are you going?'

Ne tun taa-tò tè lakòli la wa?

1SG PAST go-PPA PRES.NEG school POSTPOS:in INT.PART

'Was I not going to school?' modifying:

Jiri bi-tò ye cè faga.

tree fall-PPA COP man kill 'The falling tree kills a man.' instead of a relative clause:

O cè na-tò ye ne fa ye.

DEM.DIST man come-PPA COP POSS.PRO.1SG father COP 'That man coming is my father.' / 'That man who is coming is my father.' as complement:

A ma sa don-tò ye wo kònò.

3SG PERF.NEG snake enter-PPA see hole POSTPOS:in

'He did not see the snake entering into the hole.' with the copula don:

A na-tò don.

3SG come-PPA COP

'He is coming.' -ta: Anticipation of an action / Potential / Anticipatory Participle The suffix -ta can only be combined with transitive verbs to form the so-called Anticipatory Participle. The New Bambara Grammar describes this form as "adjective of quality" and compares it to the English forms ending in -ible und -able. ye 'to see' => ye-ta 'visible'quotesdbs_dbs12.pdfusesText_18